Chapter 108: Unbelievable
"Boss, they're ready."
In a small building in Burbank, Jones Butler walked towards the screening room with a large man, saying, "I guarantee the film will be a real eye-opener. It's the best horror film I've seen in the last two years."
Harvey Weinstein turned his head to look at Jones Butler. "Has that young director really improved that much?"
Jones Butler nodded solemnly. "It may not be an exact comparison, but the gap between 'Hard Candy' and 'Saw' is like Spielberg's 'The Sugarland Express' to 'Jaws'."
While the films themselves can't be compared, the change in the director's skill level between the two works is somewhat similar.
When they reached the screening room, Jones Butler stepped forward to open the door, and Harvey Weinstein walked in first. There were a few marketing evaluators from Miramax in the room. Behind the projector, the director they had met once was preparing with a thin and a heavy-set person.
Murphy also saw Harvey Weinstein. To him, Weinstein was a true industry giant. He quickly put down his work and went over to greet him.
"Hello, Mr. Weinstein." Murphy was somewhat pleasantly surprised by Weinstein's appearance.
The big man said nothing and only nodded at him. Jones Butler came over and whispered, "How's the preparation?"
Murphy didn't mind the brief greeting and nodded. "We can start anytime."
Jones Butler glanced at Harvey Weinstein. After he sat down, she said, "Let's begin."
At Murphy's signal, Seth Rogen closed the curtains, and James Franco turned off the lights. Murphy stood behind the projector, and the screen in front lit up.
Everyone in the screening room, including Harvey Weinstein, focused their attention on the screen.
Murphy concentrated on operating the projector but occasionally peeked at the audience. The Miramax team watched the film intently, with many taking notes. His primary focus, though, was Harvey Weinstein. From behind, he couldn't see Weinstein's expression, but his posture was upright, and he hadn't shifted for a while.
What did this mean? Either he was asleep, or he was completely engrossed in the film.
From any perspective, Murphy thought the likelihood of the former was minimal. This was "Saw." Although he might not have surpassed the original creator's work by much, he didn't think he had done worse. Especially with the extensive use of cross-cutting, the film presented enough suspense and graphic gore.
In the East, these scenes might be more nauseating, but in North America, traditional horror films differ significantly. The more gore, the more terrifying the film tends to be.
This wasn't just Murphy's opinion but an objective fact.
A horror film that fails to create a terrifying atmosphere is bound to fail. His film wouldn't. When Carey Mulligan's character jumped into a sea of syringes, he clearly heard several people gasp.
Jones Butler was also breathing rapidly. Even though it was her second viewing, the pit of needles was still horrifying.
When Jonah Hill's character appeared in the maze of barbed wire, with blood, stomach acid, tears, and saliva flowing, it was simply...
Harvey Weinstein finally shifted his position, subconsciously wiping the sweat off his forehead. He involuntarily thought of himself, and his fat body shuddered.
This film was indeed frightening.
Then came the joint-breaking rack, which twisted a person's body...
Several people turned to look back, wanting to know what kind of twisted mind could come up with such elaborate killing methods.
What they saw was a young, calm, and serious face.
When the orderly broke into the secret room, Harvey Weinstein nodded slightly. This was a very good horror film, incorporating many of Hollywood's traditional horror elements while cleverly addressing many of the flaws of conventional gore films.
Weinstein was well-acquainted with Hollywood horror films. Many were similar in their bloodshed and slaughter, driven by market demand because such films had the smallest cultural barriers, the widest dissemination, and the most fans. Especially those with numerous sequels, like "A Nightmare on Elm Street," "Friday the 13th," and "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre."
Even Miramax's flagship series "Scream" could be categorized similarly.
Undoubtedly, these traditional slasher films had certain drawbacks. They often used flimsy, perverse, or supernatural excuses to create a murderous villain, with the main attraction being a variety of extreme death scenes.
This led to the biggest issue: audience fatigue, which had caused the traditional horror film market to slump in recent years.
But "Saw" was noticeably different. Though it presented violence and gore, it was rich in entertainment elements, with traps, dark human nature, enclosed spaces, and mystery.
The filthy settings, chilling killing mechanisms, and bone-crunching torture scenes were all wrapped in intense horror. The skillful use of cross-cutting to explain the complex plot lines and the meticulous plot integration rivaled detective novels. Beneath the B-movie facade was a high-level suspense film that could be watched, savored, verified, and even resonate multiple times.
This was an outstanding horror film.
Harvey Weinstein made his judgment but maintained a calm expression. Such a horror film was rare in recent years, but was it as remarkable as Jones Butler claimed?
But the next moment, he changed his mind.
The orderly wasn't the real culprit. The corpse in the secret room stood up. His hunched, frail body, with eyes sharp in the close-up, seemed to pierce through everything in this world.
Then came the flashback cross-cuts, especially the police officer's line, "The killer likes to watch his work up close," which made many realize the truth.
Harvey Weinstein's hand tightly gripped the armrest, his face showing a hint of surprise. Despite his extensive viewing experience, this ending was completely unexpected.
He couldn't help but look back at the projector. In just a few months, the young director had made such incredible progress. It was simply unbelievable.
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